XXXV.— THE HULA KTLU 



The hnla Mhi was so called from being used in a sport bearing that 

 name which was much patronized by the alii class of the ancient 

 regime. It was a betting game, or, more strictly, forfeits were 

 pledged, the payment of which was met by the performance of a 

 dance, or by the exaction of kisses and embraces. The satisfaction of 

 these forfeits not unfrequently called for liberties and concessions 

 that could not be permitted on the spot or in public, but must wait 

 the opportunity of seclusion. There were, no doubt, times when the 

 conduct of the game was carried to such a pitch of license as to otfend 

 decency; but as a rule the outward proprieties were seemingly as 

 well regarded as at an old-fashioned husking bee, when the finding 

 of the ^ red ear " conferred or imposed the privilege or penalty of 

 exacting or granting the blushing tribute of a kiss. Actual impro- 

 l^rieties were not witnessed. 



The game of kilu was played in an open matted space that lay be- 

 tween the two divisions of the audience — the women being on one 

 side and the men on the other. Any chief of recognized rank in the 

 papa alii was permitted to join in the game; and kings and queens 

 were not above participating in the pleasures of this sport. Once 

 admitted to the hall or inclosure, all were peers and stood on an equal 

 footing as to the rules and privileges of the game. King nor queen 

 could plead exemption from the forfeits incurred nor deny to another 

 the full exercise of j^rivileges acquired under the rules. 



The players, five or more of each sex, having been selected by the 

 president. La anoano (''quiet day"), sat facing each other in the 

 space between the spectators. In front of each player stood a conical 

 block of heavy wood, broad at the base to keep it upright. The 

 kilu, with which the game was played, was an oval, one-sided 

 dish, made by cutting in two an egg-shaped coconut shell. The ob- 

 ject of the player was to throw his kilu so that it should travel with 

 a sliding and at the same time a rotary motion across the matted floor 

 and hit the wooden block which stood before the one of his choice on 

 the side opposite. The men and the women took turns in playing. A 

 successful hit entitled the player to claim a kiss from his opponent, a 

 toll which was exacted at once. Success in winning ten points made 

 one the victor in the game, and, according to some, entitled him to 

 claim the larger forfeit, such as was customary in the democratic 



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